Phony utility scams are back

MONTICELLO, NY — The Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office is warning the public of a new rash of scams being perpetrated in the county. Callers pretending to be from New York State Gas & Electric (NYSEG), Central Hudson Gas & Electric and Orange and Rockland Utilities (O&R) are contacting residents and claiming that their electric bills are overdue. The sheriff’s office recommends that you hang up immediately if you receive one of these calls. Residents should contact their utility company directly if they have any doubt as to whether they owe any money.

New calendar for public events

MONTICELLO, NY — A new calendar at www.sullivanny.us aims to increase public awareness of and participation in county government events and activities. Located at www.sullivanny.us/calendar, the app is meant to display public activities mounted by the county government and/or held on county government property. The ultimate goal, according to a press release, is to list every such event on the calendar, so the public has a better understanding and awareness of the wide array of services the county government provides.

NY supports electric vehicle adoption

ALBANY, NY — Gov. Kathy Hochul commemorated National Drive Electric Week by directing the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation to take major regulatory action that will require all new passenger cars, pickup trucks and SUVs sold in New York State to have zero emissions by 2035. It would require an increasing percentage of new light-duty vehicle sales to be zero-emission vehicles, starting with 35 percent of sales in model year 2026, 68 percent of sales by 2030, and 100 percent of sales by 2035.

The Biden-Harris administration earlier announced it had approved Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment plans for all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, giving all states access to funding totaling more than $1.5 billion to help build EV chargers. Those chargers would cover approximately 75,000 miles of highway across the country. “The approval, which includes up to $175 million to expand New York’s network, will help further facilitate the transition to zero-emission vehicles and advance New York State’s nation-leading goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, combat climate change, improve air quality, provide benefits to disadvantaged communities, and create green jobs,” said Hochul.

PA sustainability summit announced

HARRISBURG, PA — On September 27, Gov. Tom Wolf announced that the PA GreenGov Council will host the commonwealth’s first-ever sustainability summit. The summit will bring together Pennsylvania’s leading sustainability experts, elected officials, state-agency leaders and policymakers for a series of conversations and presentations on the energy conservation and sustainability progress the commonwealth has made, as well as the challenges it will face in the future. This event is free and open to all. For more information, visit bit.ly/RRsustainabilitysummit.

Sullivan improves in fiscal rankings

MONTICELLO, NY — The New York State comptroller’s office has designated Sullivan County free of fiscal stress, with the county’s finances in the best shape since reporting began, a press release from the county stated.

The comptroller’s office just released its 2021 fiscal stress rankings for municipalities statewide, based on the annual financial reports submitted to the office. Sullivan County scored extremely well, the press release stated, earning the rank of “No Designation” (meaning there are no indications of the county being susceptible to fiscal stress at this time).

“This latest report demonstrates we continue to maintain county government’s fiscal stability,” Sullivan County Manager Josh Potosek said. “And for the second year in a row, we also received ‘No Designation’ for environmental stress, meaning prospects are excellent for the county continuing that stability.”

Guardianship legislation announced

HARRISBURG, PA — State Senators Art Haywood (D-Montgomery/Philadelphia) and Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Wyoming/Susquehanna/Wayne/Pike) announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously advanced legislation that will strengthen guardianship laws in Pennsylvania.

When a court determines that an adult is incapacitated, it appoints a professional or family guardian, who is responsible for making certain decisions on the adult’s behalf, in either a full or a limited capacity.

In October 2019, three court-appointed guardians embezzled more than $1 million from 108 victims in six Pennsylvania counties. The new legislation proposes to appoint counsel for incapacitated persons without representation, requires certification for professional guardians, advises courts to first explore alternatives to guardianship, and requires that petitions for guardianship demonstrate that less restrictive alternatives were considered, but were deemed insufficient.

Ellenville Regional Hospital receives $1 million for opioid response

WASHINGTON, DC — On September 27, Rep. Pat Ryan announced $1 million in funding for Ellenville Regional Hospital as part of the Opioid Response Program. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced investments of more than $104 million to expand treatment and prevention services for substance use in rural communities nationwide as part of its Rural Communities Opioid Response Program, a multi-year initiative aimed at reducing the morbidity and mortality of rural Americans from substance use disorder.

Road closure in Lackawaxen

DUNMORE, PA — PennDOT will begin patching and paving work on State Route 1014 (Masthope Plank Road) in Lackawaxen Township on Monday, October 10. Work was rescheduled due to a municipal paving project on Westcolang Road. Work will take place daily from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Motorists can check conditions on major roadway miles by visiting www.511PA.com. The 511PA service is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional Twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website.

Bill expands home loan eligibility for service members

WASHINGTON, DC — A bill introduced by Rep. Pat Ryan, titled the “Expanding Home Loans for Guard and Reservists Act,” passed the House on a bipartisan vote. National Guard service members in active duty for training or entering the National Guard for a longer training pipeline—e.g. Special Forces, aviation or linguistics—are currently being denied VA home loans. The initial entry training for these Guard members and reservists is on a Title 10 duty status, which then gets extended, and they stay Title 10 instead of going to Title 32.

Rep. Ryan’s bill expands eligibility for VA housing loans to members of the U.S. National Guard who have been called to active duty under Title 10 active duty status.